QEK Junior – Anomie (Album – Young And Cold Records)
Genre/Influences: EBM, Minimal-Electro, Electro-Pop.
Format: Digital, Vinyl.
Background/Info: German EBM formation QEK Junior is back on track, unleashing their first new work in ten years. After the promising debut album “Ausverkauf” (2009) and the rather unknown “Druschba” (2011) they became pretty silent. The band is now back with a new line-up, but still driven by core member Dominic Daub.
Content: “Anomie” is not just EBM and that’s maybe the main difference with the early work. The songs sound like a mix between EBM elements, reminding me of DAF and a more Experimental and yet Electro-Pop composition à la Welle:Erdball. The second part of the album is a bit darker and more into old-school EBM. All songs have been still sung in German.
+ + + : I definitely prefer the B-side of the album revealing 4 songs in a personal EBM vein; it’s retro-like, dark and into minimalism, but pretty exciting. “Kind Der Actziger” is an excellent piece reminding me of the best years of DAF. But I also have to mention “Erörterung Basaler Kapitalistischer Prinzipien In Knapp Drei Minuten (Jawoll Herr Schmidt)” and the darkest songs from the album “Dicta Delgado” and “Wer Hat Den Ganzen Lack Gesoffen?!”. The sound of this band is still pretty exciting so it’s good to see QEK Junior back on track.
– – – : The album only features 4 songs and that’s a pity especially considering the songs are rather short and the first side sounds more like a warm up for the B-side.
Conclusion: QEK Junior still has that funny EBM approach, which will appeal for all lovers of vintage EBM.
Best songs: “Kind Der Achtziger”, “Dicta Delgado”, “Wer Hat Den Ganzen Lack Gesoffen?!”, “Erörterung Basaler Kapitalistischer Prinzipien In Knapp Drei Minuten (Jawoll Herr Schmidt)”.
Rate: 7½.
Artist: www.qek-junior.eu / www.facebook.com/qekjunior
Label: https://youngandcold.de /
www.facebook.com/youngandcoldrecords
About QEK Junior
QEK Junior is a German EBM and minimal-electro project set up in 2005; Discogs lists Dominic Daub and Tobias Dupont as members. After an untitled self-released CDr EP in 2007, the debut album “Ausverkauf” came out on Danse Macabre in January 2009, followed by the LP “Druschba” on Hertz-Schrittmacher in 2011. Young And Cold Records reissued “Ausverkauf” on vinyl in 2020; Side-Line reviewed that edition in October 2020.
“Anomie” appeared as a download on 1 March 2021 and as an LP with download card on Young And Cold Records on 15 June 2021. The eight tracks are “Trümmer”, “Ich bin raus”, “Digitaler Nihilismus”, “Moralisch korrekt”, “Dicta Delgado”, “Erörterung basaler kapitalistischer Prinzipien in knapp drei Minuten (Jawoll Herr Schmidt)”, “Kind der Achtziger” and “Wer hat den ganzen Lack gesoffen?!”. The band describes the album on Bandcamp as “German minimal wave with a cynical approach”. No production credits are listed on Discogs.
The compilation CDr “Art Brut (Eine Subjektive Auswahl)” and the LP “Das Gespenst Der Freiheit” (10 December 2024) followed on Young And Cold Records. “Anomie” is the first QEK Junior album in ten years and its second Side-Line review.
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